


The Sun to my Moon

by Schizocheater



Series: McKirk [1]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-19
Updated: 2015-12-19
Packaged: 2018-05-07 17:47:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5465447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schizocheater/pseuds/Schizocheater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bones and Jim share a small apartment downtown. Kirk’s basically a genius who’s wasting his potential at some shitty college and McCoy just got out of his divorce with a lot of issues and no money, so splitting the rent with the pretty blond seems like a good idea at first. As month go by they both come to realize that there are much more to the rebellious kid and the grumpy doctor than they thought. Leonard is about to get through his finals, which means unless Jim enlists to Starfleet too, he’ll lose his precious Bones, so Kirk follows his friend to the Academy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Sun to my Moon

**Author's Note:**

> Just something, that popped into my head laaate at night yesterday. English is not my first language, so sorry about all the mistakes.
> 
> Originally posted on tumblr: http://aislingflandus.tumblr.com/post/135525839812/the-sun-to-my-moon-mckirk-au

  
Leonard knew that his new housemate’s middle name was either Tiberius or how-can-I-fuck-up-everything from day one. It’s not like the blond caused him too much trouble, but he perfectly managed to piss off everyone who was capable of breaking his nose at least once a week. Cupcake was just the beginning, the warm up before the main act, if you wish. Jim -God forbid you try to call him James in his presence- Kirk was charming and pretty, and if that alone wasn’t enough of a burden for a horny and quite irresponsible cadet, he was one of the smartest asses in the Academy. And he obviously loved to get as high as his grades, which often led to some utterly embarrassing misunderstandings. And some utterly drunken midnight chats with Leonard. Not that Bones was complaining. He forgot about that a long time ago, but sometimes he was ready to choke his housemate with his bare hands, doctor’s oath be damned. Like today, for example, when he stumbled back to their shared apartment after a shift at the med center only to find Jim sprawled out on the too small for a man of his size couch. He was snoring quietly, a knocked over bottle beside him, soaking the light fabric with booze. Fighting the urge to just grab Jim and drag him out into the hallway, Leonard shuffled past him and went straight to his room, not wanting to inhale any more of the unpleasant fumes the kid was emitting. If he didn’t already knew that one can’t get drunk only by smelling alcohol, he would be pretty scared for his sobriety right now. When Jim managed to get in to Starfleet way past every application deadline and regulation, Leonard was naive enough to think that maybe all the ‘you can get your own ship’ and 'your father was a great man’ talk will finally help the kid to find his own path. A path that didn’t include self-destruction and daddy issues. Though that last one Jim was trying to hide. Pride and stubbornness were his best friends, and that made living with him quite complicated. Leonard takes a shower and gets into bed too tired to think about anything, and he falls asleep faster than he thought he would. The next morning, though, comes too fast and loud, which means Bones haven’t had enough sleep, which means he’s grumpy as hell and needs a cup of coffee as soon as possible. He scrapes his chin and promises himself to shave after he scrapes Jim off the couch first thing after breakfast. His plan fails miserably right when he discovers the milky mess on the kitchen floor. “Jim! Get your ass over here and get this shit cleaned up. You hear me, kid?” Stepping over the sticky pool of mashed up cereal and chocolate milk, he murmurs something about Jim’s lazy ass and makes himself a double shot of coffee. Kirk appears twenty minutes later, still in yesterday’s clothes and starts cleaning up the mess he made. He sits on the cool tiled floor with a low grunt and watches Bones with unveiled jealousy. “Don’t even think about it.” Says Leonard with a knowing look. “Make your own damn coffee. I’m sure as hell not helping you with your hangover!” “You’re cruel, Bones, you know that?” “Yeah, whatever.”  
  
The second night after their encounter they don’t even meet because Bones works a double shift and Jim is too drunk to get home and stays at his friend’s house. When they do meet, Leonard is not surprised to see a beat up Kirk, all bloody and sweaty, breathing heavily and cursing. “Hey, Bones, mind helping me up? I feel dizzy.” “Mind drinking less?” “C'mon, you southern bastard, I know you love taking care of me.” Jim flashes a wide grin and his lip splits open again, covering his chin with even more blood. With an exhausted sigh, Leonard goes back to his room for his kit and comes back with a detour to the kitchen to get a glass of water for Jim. He cleans the little cuts on the younger man’s face and looks for more serious damage but it looks like a usual bar fight. As always. “Why do I have the feeling that you get yourself in trouble on purpose, kid?” Kirk shrugs and enjoys the cool antiseptic being rubbed into his skin, barely even noticing the familiar sting. “Maybe I just love all the caring touches I get from you afterwards” He smiles again and nuzzles closer, leaning into the doctor’s touch like a gracious cat. “You’re always so good to me, Bones. You’re the only one who cares enough to patch me.” McCoy lets out another sigh and packs up his things, avoiding looking up at Jim’s face. “Just go and sleep it off, kid. I’m tired.”  
  
A few weeks go by in relative peace and the little apartment goes quiet for a while. Jim is busy with all the work he has to finish and Leonard is just living his routine, being as exhausted as always. One night he comes home earlier and finds no one in the living room nor in the kitchen, so he peeks in to Kirk’s room to check if the damned kid hasn’t died from alcohol poisoning or something else. Turns out, he’s alive, sleeping soundly. It’s more like Leonard just knows the blond hair peeking out from the sheets and pillows belongs to Jim -not like he memorized all the different shades of gold and yellow on his head- because the hair really is the only thing he can see. Jim rarely slept alone in that tiny bed of his, but when he did, it was a fortress of soft pillows and fluffy plaids, covering him entirely. Leonard saw this kind of thing only once or twice before. The first time being when he rushed into Jim’s room after he heard a terribly loud bang and found the kid sprawled out on the floor, tangled up in his sheets, unable to get out of that soft mess of a bed of his. God only knows why couldn’t he realize earlier that all the comments about the caring touches of his 'sexy doctor hands’ and Jim’s obvious love for warm and cozy bedclothes comes from his lack of care in general. Growing up without a mother, dealing with his asshole stepfather and getting sucked into the swirling rabbit hole of irresponsible one-night stands sure won’t compensate all the little things others take for granted. Leonard wanted to slap himself for not seeing this earlier. Jim just wanted a little bit of all those things he’s been missing all his life. And, being the cocky asshole he is, his only way of getting it was bullying Bones into becoming hid personal caretaker. “Bastard” Mutters Leonard under his breath, not getting angry with Jim only because the kid’s plan was understandable, given all the shit from his life Bones found out about already. Who knows what else he’s still hiding? Leonard eats a cold dinner, drinks a bottle of beer, and falls asleep on that damned uncomfortable couch while watching some old TV series. He wakes around three in the morning, stumbles back to his room, and sleeps until late afternoon, enjoying his day off.  
  
Jim comes home late and drunker than average. He curses and stumbles across the living room, crashing on the couch and obviously fighting the urge to throw up. “Bones!” He rasps, failing to untie his shoelaces and cursing again. “C'mere you southern bastard!” Leonard tries to ignore him and succeeds for an hour or so, but when he hears something crash on the kitchen floor, he just can’t fight his thoughts any more. Jim’s sitting on the counter, picking bits of glass out of his palm. Little drops of blood drip down his tight jeans and cover the floor. “Good to see you, kid” Bones practically drags Jim to the bathroom, washes his hands and puts a bandage over the deeper cuts. Jim almost purrs in delight, enjoying the feeling of Leonard’s hands on his. “You’re really fucked up in that smart head of yours, you know that, right?” McCoy regrets the question the second he asks it, but it’s too late and the damage is done. Jim stiffens and gives him a look that makes him want to punch himself. Again. Jim goes back to his room and doesn’t appear until morning, grumbling a quiet greeting on his way out. He comes back in the evening with a pretty Orion girl and they make sure Bones hears everything that’s happening in Jim’s room for the next few hours. They come to the kitchen together, laughing about something and not bothering to wear more than their underwear. Gaila -cause that’s the redhead’s name- offers Leonard a plate of the same salad they’ve been eating, and it takes all of the man’s control to not to snap and kindly accept the food. He opens another bottle of beer and hides in his room for the rest of the evening, feeling miserable and confused. He hears the front door open and click shut again way past midnight when he should be long asleep and wonders what Jim’s feeling right now. The kid must be incredibly proud of himself tight now. Or is this a deafening cry for help? Bones wants to know the answer and he wants to help, but he can’t bring himself to admit that his friendly feelings are not so friendly anymore and have grown into something much more intimate a long time ago. Just when he thinks that his brain is too tired to function and is slowly falling asleep, the door to his room opens with a quiet creak and he feels Jim sitting on the edge of his bed. Leonard doesn’t move, pretending to snore like the giant child he is. Jim wraps one of his favorite plaids around them and Bones feels like he’s been wrapped in dozens of fluffy teddy bears.  "Fix me" Exhales Jim quietly and Bones is not sure he was supposed to hear these words. The kid’s lying beside Leonard, not daring to actually touch him, but after some time he turns to his side and his warm breath tickles the back of Leonard’s neck. The doctor finally calms down and as his breathing evens out and his mind drifts off to sleep, he’s finally sure of what he has to do. He’ll buy Jim hundreds of those stupid bears and plaids and pillows if that’s what it takes to heal the poor kid’s soul. He’ll drink with him when he needs it and will listen to him when he’s finally ready to talk. And when all that’s left of those wounds are scars, he’ll be there to take care of them too.


End file.
